The Guiyuan Sect stood as one of the two titans of the Central Continent.

Although they held long-standing grievances against the Heavenly Abyss Alliance—the two factions were like fire and water—the apocalyptic disaster of [Hatred] sweeping across the world forced their hands. They had no choice but to temporarily shelve their enmity and form a united front against the encroaching darkness.

However, the grudges ran deep.

While open warfare had ceased, the undercurrents were turbulent. Small-scale conflicts, private sabotage, and attempts to trip each other up never ceased. They simply kept it below the boiling point, careful not to completely tear off the mask of civility.

The incident where Xia Chengyan was critically injured was a vicious escalation of this shadow war.

Yang Poxiao had attacked brazenly, nearly crippling the Prince of Great Xia. This event had shaken the entire Central Continent.

On the surface, the Guiyuan Sect flatly denied any involvement. They insisted it was the work of [Hatred] infected cultivators, shirking all responsibility with practiced ease. The two superpowers engaged in a furious war of words, but ultimately, with the greater threat looming, the matter was left unresolved.

Recalling that battle, a lingering fear still gripped Xia Chengyan.

He had always prided himself on his supreme talent. But in front of Yang Poxiao, a cultivator of the same realm, he had been utterly powerless.

Strength, speed, reaction time, and even the mastery of Daoist Techniques—Yang Poxiao surpassed him in every single metric by a full tier.

If the Divination Grandmaster Lin Xiaozhu hadn’t arrived in the nick of time, Xia Chengyan would have perished on the spot.

Zhang Xian understood this gap perfectly.

He knew that Yang Poxiao had been taken in as a personal disciple by the Guiyuan Sect’s legendary Supreme Elder, Grandmaster Taichu.

Grandmaster Taichu. A half-step Soul Formation entity. An existence hailed as invincible in the current cultivation world.

Yang Poxiao had triggered the genuine [High-Level Disciple Halo]. With the terrifying backing of such a master and the massive surge of Providence that followed, his cultivation progress was bound to skyrocket like a rocket. His strength was already leagues above his peers.

After nearly killing Xia Chengyan, Yang Poxiao had caused a massive uproar. To avoid suspicion—and likely to consolidate his gains—he withdrew from the Western Region battlefield. He returned to the core restricted area of the Guiyuan Sect for secluded cultivation.

And he, Yang Poxiao, was the ultimate target of Zhang Xian’s trip to the Central Continent.

Zhang Xian intended to strangle this future calamity in the cradle before he could fully mature.

To achieve this, Zhang Xian had infiltrated the Guiyuan Mountain Range. This area was the sect’s doorstep, but it was also a place where dragons and snakes mingled, making it perfect for hiding one’s identity and gathering intel.

While maintaining his cultivation, he secretly collected intelligence on the sect’s core defenses, Yang Poxiao’s specific location, and the various secret realms within the mountains.

When he accidentally discovered Ouyang Chen’s team preparing to explore the Longwu Cave Mansion—and noting they were short a “scapegoat” to test for traps—a plan instantly formed in his mind.

He donned the “vest” of the “Son of the Richest Man in Jinyuan City,” assumed the alias Lin Xuanwei, and easily bought his way into the team.

His original intention was merely to secure a low-key identity as a Guiyuan Sect disciple to probe deeper into the sect.

However, he had intercepted Ouyang Chen’s secret voice transmissions. They were planning a “black-eating-black” scenario—betrayal and murder for profit.

Zhang Xian had sneered inwardly.

Coincidentally, he had collected a faint, withered remnant of [Hatred] at the edge of the Western Region. It came in handy perfectly.

Using this remnant, he meticulously directed the horror show in the quiet room, thoroughly muddying the waters and framing the chaos on the disaster.

He had originally held a sliver of hope for the Guiyuan Sect. He thought that perhaps, as a self-proclaimed Righteous Sect, they might possess a baseline of morality in critical moments.

But Elder Chen’s appearance and actions shattered that final illusion.

This Enforcement Hall Elder spouted high-sounding, righteous rhetoric, yet she wouldn’t even part with a single [Meridian Restoration Pill] to save a dying disciple. Instead, she greedily snatched away his Storage Bag.

Greedy. Hypocritical. Cold-blooded.

This was the true face of the Guiyuan Sect’s higher-ups.

Since that was the case, Zhang Xian didn’t mind repaying them in kind. He was going to play a very big game right in the heart of their territory.

A temporary stronghold at the foot of the Guiyuan Mountain Range.

Inside a deathly silent room.

Lu Yao, looking utterly soul-lost, pushed open the door and slumped weakly against the cold wood. Cold sweat had soaked through her back robes, and her heart was still hammering against her ribs like a trapped bird.

The bloody scenes from the quiet room played on a loop in her mind.

The gruesome sight of Elder Chen being bisected at the waist. The horror of Ouyang Chen and the others dying instantly as their Dantians shattered.

And those eyes. “Lin Xuanwei’s” icy, emotionless eyes.

Subconsciously, she touched her lower abdomen. The phantom pain of the soul-rending agony she felt when the ice needle entered her body still lingered there.

Two sinister forces were now coiled within her like venomous snakes.

On one side was the [Devouring Origin Curse] planted by her master, Hu Yanqing. It clung to her bones like a maggot, controlling her life and death.

On the other side was the [Ice Needle Poison] from “Lin Xuanwei,” a torture that promised even greater agony.

Caught between two masters. Both ends were dead ends.

“Ah—!”

Lu Yao couldn’t hold it back any longer. She let out a choked sob, suppressed to the extreme.

She slid down the door to sit on the floor, hugging her knees tightly. She buried her face in her arms, her body trembling violently. Fear, despair, resentment, hatred—a tidal wave of negative emotions drowned her.

Buzz. Buzz.

Suddenly, the communication jade talisman at her waist vibrated intensely.

Lu Yao froze.

With trembling hands, almost terrified to touch it, she picked up the jade talisman. She sent a wisp of Divine Sense inside.

A line of icy, piercing words floated into her Sea of Consciousness:

[How did Lu Shu’s Soul Lamp go out? What happened?]

It was a message from her master, Hu Yanqing.

An indescribable surge of bitterness and acid jealousy instantly flooded her heart.

She remembered that seemingly casual gesture from “Lin Xuanwei” before they left the quiet room.

He had used some unknown secret technique. He hadn’t just removed the [Devouring Origin Curse] that had tormented them for hundreds of years—he had used an extremely sophisticated method to completely erase Lu Shu’s aura from the world.

Lu Shu’s Soul Lamp within the Sect had extinguished.

From that moment on, Lu Shu was truly free. She had escaped the Guiyuan Sect. She had escaped Hu Yanqing’s demonic clutches.

But what about her?

What about Lu Yao?

Not only was she still trapped, but she now carried the terrifying [Ice Needle Poison] in her veins. She had to return to the Guiyuan Sect alone and face a master who was more terrifying than a devil.

Why?

Why could her sister be freed, while she had to bear all this?

Intense grievance and twisted resentment made her want to scream. But soon, a deeper, primal fear crushed her anger.

She clutched the jade talisman, her knuckles turning white from the force. A violent struggle raged in her mind.

Two paths lay before her.

The first: Confess everything to her master. Tell him how Elder Chen and Ouyang Chen died. Reveal “Lin Xuanwei’s” entire plan. Her master was a grand Nascent Soul cultivator; surely, he would have a way to remove this damned poison?

The second: Submit to “Lin Xuanwei.” He could kill Elder Chen with a single finger and easily dissolve the [Devouring Origin Curse]. Perhaps his cultivation base was far above her master’s? Moreover, Senior “Lin Xuanwei” had promised freedom and resources if she completed his task.

But siding with “Lin Xuanwei” meant standing against the entire Guiyuan Sect. The number one sect in the cultivation world…

Lu Yao made her choice.

Trembling, she channeled her spiritual energy into the jade talisman, preparing to carve a message of betrayal.

I have to tell Master…

“AHHH!!!”

The very instant the intent to confess formed in her mind, a terrifying pain—ten times, a hundred times more intense than before—erupted from the depths of her soul without warning.